Fosbury R I P

[Jim Bow]

Dick Fosbury, of Fosbury Flop fame, passed away at 76. Lymphoma. I can still hear Jim McKay’s introduction at the Mexico Olympics.

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[CWSmith]

This country is so caught up in paying less taxes when we should be focused on detecting and curing cancer.

[JimD]

May he flop in peace. Fair winds, Dick.

[Breakaway]

Well remembered.

RIP

Kevin

[ron ll]

Wasn’t this about the same time that pole vaulters started using fiberglass poles and being shot to new heights? But Fosbury was a breakthrough and he did it on his own. RIP.

[David G]

A genius. And from the NW! Track people are always fiddling, refining, improving. Bill Bowerman, for instance, and his waffle iron. But Fosbury literally made a 'great leap forward' and rewrote the playbook along the way.

[ron ll]

I was a wannabe gymnast so my hero was Kurt Thomas of the Thomas Flair on the side horse.

[mariner2k]

He was a hero to me in high school. I was a freshman and saw one of the seniors do the flop. I wasn't all that good but had a lot of fun with it.

[sonofswen]

Fosbury’s biographer, Bob Welch, wrote that Fosbury was fine dealing with people ridiculing his style because, to him, it still wasn’t as painful as the sorrow he felt over the loss of his brother.



Innovation won out. Decades later, Fosbury’s flop remains a hit, and his willingness to take a chance remains a lesson from which almost anyone can learn.
“He was as innovative as Henry Ford was to the Model T,” Kynard said. “He’s the creator of what we still do to this day.”

[Gerarddm]

I attended the Wanamaker Games in Madison Square Garden once and was amazed to see the Flop done in person. How can a human do that, I thought.

[CWSmith]

Fosbury’s biographer, Bob Welch, wrote that Fosbury was fine dealing with people ridiculing his style because, to him, it still wasn’t as painful as the sorrow he felt over the loss of his brother.

Innovation won out. Decades later, Fosbury’s flop remains a hit, and his willingness to take a chance remains a lesson from which almost anyone can learn.
“He was as innovative as Henry Ford was to the Model T,” Kynard said. “He’s the creator of what we still do to this day.”

Interesting. Wikipedia says this:

Richard Douglas Fosbury (March 6, 1947 – March 12, 2023) was an American high jumper, who is considered one of the most influential athletes in the history of track and field. He won a gold medal at the 1968 Olympics, revolutionizing the high jump event with a "back-first" technique now known as the Fosbury flop. His method was to sprint diagonally towards the bar, then curve and leap backwards over the bar, which gave him a much lower center of mass in flight than traditional techniques. This approach has seen nearly universal adoption since Fosbury's performance in Mexico. Though he never returned to the Olympics, Fosbury continued to be involved in athletics after retirement and served on the executive board of the World Olympians Association.[2]

In 2014, Fosbury unsuccessfully challenged Steve Miller for a seat in the Idaho House of Representatives. Fosbury ran for Blaine County Commissioner against incumbent Larry Schoen in 2018, won the seat, and took office in January 2019.

I wonder how long they kept laughing?